Over the Edge
by Catalina Leigh
Summary: After a tragic event, Face goes over the edge, and he may be too far gone for Hannibal to pull him back. -A Scrapper story-
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own the A-Team, etc. etc.**

 **Warning: This chapter is a little graphic, so fair warning.**

 **I did a lot of research on the internet and talking to someone who knows about the subject; I wanted it to be realistic, though I didn't add as much detail as I could've.**

 **A/N: This is another story in my A Scrapper universe. I kinda alluded to this in A Scrapper, and finally started writing. This takes place about a year after A Scrapper. Enjoy!**

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Chapter 1

1970

\- Present -

It was deja vu; Hannibal leaning back against the wall, puffing on his cigar as he stared at the handcuffed lieutenant sitting on the cot.

The colonel thought he'd made some good progress on figuring the kid out since the first time they'd been in these positions, but once again Face had proven how unpredictable he could be. Here Hannibal was, yet again, trying to decipher what was going through the lieutenant's head. Except, with everything that had happened in the last week, Hannibal truly didn't know if he'd be able to pull the kid out of the brig this time.

Hannibal was really only sure about one thing, and that was the catalyst for Face's downward spiral.

\- 9 days ago -

They had just left the Montagnards' village, crossing a road to get to the field on the other side of the tree line where Murdock was picking them up.

Ray and BA had taken point. Reyes was talking to Hannibal about convincing the brass to let them come back with vaccines for the children in the village. He knew Face could get the meds, but they had to get the OK to come back. The lieutenant and radioman were bringing up the rear, in a debate about the girl Combs had met in Hawaii on their R&R a few months ago. He had been exchanging letters with her ever since, but Face was convinced this "love" Combs claimed to be developing was nothing more than a sham. Combs just laughed and told Face he was too young to understand; to which Face rolled his eyes.

Everything after that happened in slow motion.

Face yelled, "DOWN!" the second he heard the muffled explosion.

The lieutenant's quick reflexes had him prone in the dirt when the next blast erupted less than a second later. He didn't hear anything after that.

His ears were ringing as he tried to reorient himself; a task easier said than done with the vertigo and disorientation. When Face began to sit up and started looking around to check on everyone else, the first thing he saw made his blood run cold. It was an Army issued boot with the foot still in it; it'd been ripped off mid-calf.

Turning, Face saw the body the foot belonged to, or what was left of it at least. If he could hear, the lieutenant would've heard Combs's bloodcurdling screaming.

Out of the corner of his eye, Face unconsciously registered the rest of the team had gotten lucky. They were climbing out of the ditch on the side of the road.

Reyes immediately ran to Combs, who was missing his right hand in addition to the foot that had landed by Face. The radioman's waist was shredded; barely held together, his insides were sticking out. Blood was everywhere, and it wasn't stopping.

Time was a foreign concept. What was only minutes felt like hours.

They couldn't call for a medivac, or Murdock. The radio Combs had been carrying was in pieces, most of which were now in Combs's body, in addition to shrapnel from the landmine.

Face was only vaguely aware of someone, Ray, trying to get his attention. The lieutenant knocked away the XO's hand that was trying to check him for injuries. Face's attention was solely on Reyes.

Due to the ringing in his ears, the lieutenant didn't know what Reyes had said, or yelled, but he knew it wasn't good, as the medic threw something with as much force as he could muster before collapsing in on himself; hunched over in defeat, his forehead almost touching Combs's shoulder.

The others' body language was similar, though slightly more subdued. It told the lieutenant everything.

All Face could do was just stare at what was left of his friend.

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 **A/N: Hope you liked that chapter! I know it was kinda short, but hopefully you understand why. I've already started on the second chapter, but no guarantees on when I'll finish it. I'm gonna try to update this story at least once a month, but no promises. As always, reviews are greatly appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys, so sorry it's taken me so long to update! I've actually had most of this chapter written for a while, though originally I'd thought it was gonna be longer. I suffered a big loss not long after I'd posted the first chapter, and then dealing with stuff from work, and now an injury, so it's taken me a while to get back to writing. But I'm trying :) Anyway, enjoy!**

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Chapter 2

\- Present -

"Wanna fill me in Lieutenant?" Hannibal wasn't asking. While his posture had remained the same, his voice was unwavering.

"On what?" Face muttered sullenly. Though his defiance was palpable, it was obvious the kid was still drunk and didn't want to be in the same room as his CO.

But the colonel wasn't giving him a choice. "On what the hell happened Lieutenant!" Hannibal snapped, pushing himself off the wall and moving to stand in front of his lieutenant.

The set of his jaw told the older man Face's instinct was to fight. Instead, the kid turned his head away from the colonel and didn't reply.

Hannibal let out a heavy sigh and squatted down so they were eye level. Part of him wanted to ream the kid out for all the crap the he'd pulled, but the colonel knew that wasn't what Face needed right now. He was already on the verge of losing the kid to a court martial, Hannibal didn't want to lose the progress they'd made as a team since the first time he'd pulled the lieutenant out of a cell just like this one.

"Kid," Hannibal started gently. "Talk to me."

Face purposely kept his face turned away from the colonel. He was trying not to fidget. Hannibal knew he was in the kid's personal space, which Face barely tolerated on the best day, and right now he was trapped. He couldn't scoot back, Hannibal was right in front of him, blocking his ability to stand and pace the small cell. The look in his eyes was that of a cornered animal; realization there was nowhere to go, panic seeping in. Hannibal had seen it before. The only difference this time was that the colonel didn't think the kid was going to lash out. He was too wounded.

Taking a deep breath, Hannibal stood. He caught the quick, short-lived, relief that passed through the kid before Hannibal took it away by sitting down next to him.

Face immediately used the opportunity to try to get up and put at least a little bit of space between them. However, the colonel anticipated this and grabbed the kid's collar and pulled him right back down; a task made easier by the handcuffs preventing the lieutenant from using his arms.

Letting out a petulant sigh was the kid's only response, but Hannibal knew better than to mistake the lack of reaction for compliance. He knew Face was just waiting him out; which is why the colonel did not release his hold on the lieutenant.

This subdued, withdrawn Face was a side of the kid Hannibal hadn't seen before. Every other time the lieutenant had gone down this dark and self-destructive path, he was angry and lashed out at anyone that tried to help or got in his way. Being on a team where everyone was stubborn and kept each other from going too far had helped keep the kid in check and prevent any major issues. Until now at least. This time was different. Face's attitude was still there, but it was quiet. He was holding everything in instead of picking fights. And no one knew how bad it was until it was too late.

\- 7 days ago -

If Hannibal hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed it. Face - the kid who always talked his way out of medical without evaluation, except for the one time he'd been shot in the leg during what the team, even Murdock since he'd gotten shot down, referred to as one of Hannibal's crazier plans - didn't argue with the doctors who wanted to keep him for observation after they'd finished debriding his legs. The kid had gotten lucky; he'd been outside of the bouncing betty's kill radius, and his quick reaction and body position had prevented any serious injuries. His pack, flak vest, and helmet had taken most of the damage. Some of the shrapnel hit his legs and arms, but it was mostly superficial; the ones that weren't didn't hit anything major. The doctor said he'd probably be really sore for a while, but that should be the extend of it.

What had the colonel concerned was the fact that Face hadn't said a single word since yelling a warning right before the explosion that killed Combs. It hadn't worried Hannibal at first. None of them had spoken as they gathered up their teammate's remains and wrapped him up for transport. Murdock didn't even say anything as they boarded the chopper. Ray had shaken his head when Reyes started to check Face for injuries; the lieutenant hadn't let the XO touch him, and adrenaline was keeping him functioning for the moment. Reyes was still too shook to argue; he understood. BA just sat there, a sorrowful expression covering the big man's features. Hannibal didn't speak until they arrived back at camp, and even then he used few words to explain what had happened; he'd lost men before, but it never got any easier to talk about.

Silence reigned in the hooch. There had been one muted conversation to fill Murdock in on the details, but other than that the team was subdued; communicating with nods and gestures, or monosyllabic answers.

The doctor who treated Face told Hannibal that the lieutenant hadn't engaged with anyone. He said Face just laid there with a blank expression, and didn't speak or even acknowledge anything that was said to him. The doc had wanted to order a psych eval, but Hannibal told him the kid was fine and just needed time to process. Truth was Hannibal knew a shrink wouldn't do anything except make Face shut down even more than he already had.

This was war; people died. They'd all lost a friend. But Hannibal knew it was different for Face. Being on this team was the first time the kid had gotten close to anyone, or as close as Face ever got, and he'd just watched one of those people die in one of the worst ways.

When the lieutenant limped back into the hooch, Hannibal watched the rest of the team look like they were about to say something until they read Face's body language. They'd all learned when they could and couldn't push the kid to talk, and this was one of those times when it was better that they not say anything.

Face paused for only a split second to stare at Combs's bunk. He quickly recovered and made his way over to his own, where he laid down without a word or glance to anyone else.

Seeing the kid just laying there, still as could be as he stared at the ceiling with that blank expression was unnerving to say the least.

Murdock gave Hannibal a forlorn look, but the colonel honestly didn't know how to ease the pilot's mind. He could see the concern for the lieutenant written on each of his men's faces. The fact remained though that they still didn't know that much about Face, and none of them had a clue how to help him through this.

Taking a deep breath, Hannibal finally addressed his team. "We've been given a few days on stand down. Take today, cause tomorrow we're training." Looking at each one of them, he added in a gentler tone, "We're a man down, so we need to learn how to operate as such."

The relief on Reyes's face was palpable. BA and Murdock exchanged a solemn nod. Ray had a small, sad smile. They'd all understood what he'd meant; no one was replacing Combs, at least not yet. Face hadn't reacted, but honestly, with the way the kid had been, Hannibal hadn't expected him to. The colonel just hoped getting the lieutenant back into action would help get him out of his own head, and keep him from thinking about the tragedy they'd just been through.

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 **A/N: Hope you liked that chapter! I'm not gonna make any promises about when the next one will be up, but I'm gonna do my best to have it up within the next couple months. As always, reviews are greatly appreciated!**


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